ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on a specific reformist Hindu sect, the Krishna Pranâmîs, which author have studied during field trips to Nepal and India, and aims at providing a better understanding of the areas of interaction, convergence, and possibly resistance between the Hindu nationalist movement and what can be called modern Hindu civil society. The Krishna Pranâmî (also called Nijânanda) sampradâya originated in Gujarat in the 17th century. The performance of sevâ, serving humanity in a totally disinterested way, is the first common notion. This ancient conception was reformulated by neo-Hindu movements at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century, partly to imitate Western Christian philanthropic activities. Anti-Muslim riots took place in the Himalayan kingdom, but they cannot be compared with, for instance, the large scale 2002 massacre in Gujarat where more than a thousand people were killed.
